“I can,” Susanna said. “He attacked our carriage last week on the road. His henchman practically beat Hawksridge to death.”
“Oh my God!” Clara exclaimed.
Miles looked down at her. “Susanna, who is this man?”
Susanna glanced to her friend, who sent her a sympathetic look. Then she took a deep breath to steady her racing heart. He deserved the truth. She tugged on Miles’s hand and led him away from the others. When they had some space to speak privately, she turned to face him. “I do know that man. Before you and I were together I was involved with him, romantically, for a short time.”
“What?” His eyes widened in shock.
She lowered her gaze to the buttons of his waistcoat. Her confession easier without having to see the censure in his eyes. “I was very lonely and he paid attention to me, flirted, told me sweet words. I knew it was wrong to become involved, and I broke things off but he didn’t take it well. Became obsessed with me.” She forced herself to raise her chin. “The attack on the road was about me. He was trying to kidnap me. You were hurt because of me. It was all because of my mistakes.”
He glanced over at the man on the ground and then back to her. His hand came up to cup her cheek. “We all make mistakes. He is caught now. I will make sure he never comes near you again.”
His acceptance spread sweet and warm through her chest. Tears she could not stop rolled down her cheeks. “The real you would be scandalized. I don’t think you would forgive me so easily.”
His thumb brushed tears off her cheek. “Then I don’t want to be that man anymore.” He bent and kissed her.
Susanna wrapped her arms around his waist and sank into his soft kiss. Fear and love battled for supremacy inside her heart. She didn’t deserve this man. Once he got his memory back, he would surely spurn her for her lies and her indiscretion. But wrapped in his warm embrace she couldn’t help but have a small kernel of hope. Perhaps all they had shared this past two weeks would lead him to forgive her eventually?
“Come, let’s take care of this trash. And then I want to take you back to the manor and make love to you until you can’t remember a single detail of this awful man.”
Mr. Maddox and Colonel Hadley had Stuart between them his arms gripped tightly. They spoke at length with an older gentleman. They gestured to her as she and Miles approached.
“Take him to the holding cell,” the older man said. Then he turned to them. “Good day, I am Mr. Fink. I am the magistrate for these parts. Lucky I was here in town with my family today. We can charge your attacker if you are willing to give a statement.”
Miles wrapped an arm around her. “Perhaps you could take her statement tomorrow. My wife is still in shock from what just happened.” His voice so authoritative that the magistrate coughed into his hand nervously.
“No, it’s all right I would rather do it now and have it done. I don’t want to have to think about him ever again.”
“Are you sure?” Miles asked.
She nodded.
He turned back to the magistrate. “I hope you have a location in which to take her statement that is befitting of a lady of her station.”
The magistrate nodded. “Of course, Lord Hawksridge. We may meet in my office. It is here in town. My wife would be happy to have tea set up for you both. Please follow me.”
Susanna’s lips twitched. She highly doubted that Mrs. Fink would be happy to leave the fair to cater to them, but she was glad that Miles’s natural hauteur would get them off the street. She really could use a hot cup of tea.
*
Later that eveningMiles undressed her with gentle hands and lifted her into a steaming bath. Susanna sank down into the copper tub with a sigh of pleasure. Miles knelt next to her and rolled up his sleeves to his elbows. His forearms were lightly dusted with hair and corded muscles flexed as he pushed the fabric higher.
“You did well this afternoon. I know it couldn’t have easy to speak of such a personal topic with a stranger.”
Susanna closed her eyes. “It was far more embarrassing to speak of it in front of you. I never intended for anyone outside the circus to know I had made such a mistake.”
Miles took a cloth and dipped it into the hot water before rubbing a bar of soap across it to create a sweet-smelling lather. “I can’t say that I am pleased you kept such a secret from me. But I guess I understand why you would.” He swiped the soapy cloth down her neck and over her collarbone.
“Miles, I am capable of washing myself. Now who is babying who?”
“It is my pleasure to wash away all the stress of the day.” He leaned in and kissed her, his lips as hot as the water that surrounded her. Picking up one arm he glided the soapy cloth up and down, then paused with a frown. When she glanced down, she could see several dark bruises had formed where Stuart had gripped her arm. Miles rinsed the soap away and then bent to kiss each offending mark.
Then he lifted the other arm and washed it. She took the opportunity to lean in and kiss his neck as he leaned over her. He pulled back slowly, and his eyes heated as he ran the cloth over her breasts. Taking special care to caress the curve of each one before he slid the cloth down slowly over her stomach. She sucked in a shaky breath at the delicious pulse of anticipation but he stopped before he reached her mons.
Miles scooted down to the end of the tub and lifted one leg out of the water. Placing a kiss at her ankle he washed slowly down the length of her leg, the cloth swiping teasingly over her center before lifting the other leg to wash back up. When he reached her foot, he rubbed his thumb along her instep. She sighed with pleasure. At her response, he rubbed harder massaging the bottom of her foot. The distress from her encounter with Stuart melted away at his ministrations.
“You really do have beautiful toes.” Miles bent and sucked her big toe into his mouth, his tongue laving at the tip. His brown eyes churned with desire. Then he dropped her foot back into the water and trailed his fingertips down her calf, up over her knee, and along the inside of her thigh.
